From travel to opinions to sports, Alison Hill shares five different forms of journalism that range in word count, expectations, and timeliness, and more.
Journalism falls into four broad categories—news journalism, investigative journalism, feature journalism, and opinion/analysis. These types then branch out into a variety of different niches, styles, and techniques, with specialties ranging from politics and crime to sports and entertainment.
General news reporting is deadline-driven, succinct, and meant to inform the public quickly and objectively about the day’s news. Investigative journalism takes a deep dive into a story or topic to uncover something previously unknown or deliberately hidden. We’ve covered both categories in previous articles, so we’ll skip these for now.
But there are several journalistic forms we haven’t yet explored in this series, which adopt vastly different styles, with some appealing to specific audiences. These include opinion/analysis, features, and the often-overlooked business of sports reporting, which is referred to as “soft news.” There are many other types and genres, such as entertainment, crime, reviews, Q&A, trade, and long-form literary journalism, which we’ll save for another day.
In the meantime, let’s look at five different forms or types of journalism we’ve been neglecting!
Opinion Journalism
Opinion journalism is when you can “say your piece” and fling off the shackles of objectivity, while presenting a cogent argument. You can be as opiniated as you like (within reason, of course) on whatever current issue or topic that catches your attention, be it politics, a trend, or new policy. If you can write a convincing, fact-based piece, make the subject interesting and do your homework, you can get paid for “telling it like it is.” Opinion pieces are shorter, from 300 to 700 words, and must focus on timely, topical issues. The quicker you can pitch your ideas to relevant publications, the better.
Columnists can also offer commentary and opinions, and many journalists make a mark this way, sharing their take on the latest news or events. A column is usually a recurring piece in a magazine or newspaper, published daily, weekly, or monthly. But not all columns are opinionated, they can be about business, gardening, and technology, or all about journalism, like this one.
Usually, a good opinion piece or column on a controversial topic requires research so the writer can support their arguments with facts and figures and maybe a few choice quotes. The best part of opinion journalism is that writers are free to select their own topics. Opinion pieces can be submitted by subject matter experts, those with a unique perspective, a connection to the issue, or by any observant freelance generalist. Some people make a living through writing columns and opinion pieces.
In 2021, The New York Times decided to retire the term “op-ed” (a name derived from its placement opposite the newspaper’s editorial page) and instead use “Guest Essays” in reference to opinion pieces written by outside contributors.
Travel Journalism
Travel journalists create content on travel, the travel industry, and tourism. They can work for magazines, online publications, or even broadcast outlets. Formats can include how-tos (such as 10 tips for traveling with toddlers), roundup articles (Best Beaches in the U.S.), longform features, and essay formats. Topics can range from travel trends to tourist destinations. Many travel journalists specialize in a particular type of travel, such as adventure travel, ecotourism, or RVing. Others work for trade magazines focusing on the industry, the business aspect of tourism and those who work in the industry, such as cruise ship hires or hotel workers.
Most travel journalists are freelance writers who pitch story ideas to publications, either specialist travel magazines and websites or travel sections in general magazines. A few are lucky enough to be hired as staff writers at prestigious publications and get to write about travel full time.
The biggest perk of being a travel journalist is, of course, the traveling involved. Imagine all the interesting and exotic destinations you get to visit? You could also try out a scary zip line for a story or go spelunking. The catch is that some freelancers must pay their own way and may not be reimbursed at all for travel expenses.
Photojournalism
Photojournalism is quite simply a popular form of journalism using images to tell a story and inform the audience, often without the need for any explanatory text. Just as in all journalistic genres a photojournalist must adhere to the basic standards of truth, factual accuracy, and objectivity. Photojournalists are either employed by a publication or work freelance selling their work to many outlets.
The goal of a photojournalist is not only to take a good photograph of an event or situation unfolding, but to capture the truth, which is often horrific. They are on the scene, reporting through the lens of a camera and just one image can sometimes tell the complete story. Some of the most famous photos depict war, such as the Pulitzer-Prize winning photograph of a terrified 9-year-old Vietnamese girl fleeing a deadly napalm attack, officially titled “The Terror of War,” but more commonly known as “Napalm Girl.”
A powerful photo can not only make an indelible impression, capture a historical moment in time and win prestigious awards, it can also lead to tragedy. Photographers can be exposed to traumatic and horrific scenes, then face criticism back home for recording them. “The Vulture and the Little Girl,” also known as “The Struggling Girl,” is a harrowing image exposing the famine in Sudan. It shows a starving child collapsed in the foreground, a vulture lurking behind. The child (who turned out to be a boy and did survive) was reportedly trying to reach a United Nations feeding center a half mile away. Taken by South African photojournalist Kevin Carter, the photo first appeared in The New York Times on 26 March 1993, and won a Pulitzer Prize for Feature Photography in 1994. But four months after receiving the award, Carter took his own life at the age of 33.
Sports Journalism
Yes, sports reporters are journalists, and yes, the subject matter does make it soft news, but the journalistic rules and principles of truth and accuracy still apply. Sports journalists are trained in the same techniques as the rest of us, and must possess excellent research, writing, and interviewing skills to succeed. They also need incredible people skills as this job involves frequently attending sporting events, be it local high-school football games or the Olympics.
It’s also an advantage to know the rules of the sport you’re reporting on. I once auditioned for a sports journalist/presenter role covering European soccer, and it was down to two of us. While cold commentating on a match I made the blunder of calling a free kick a penalty, and … I didn’t get the job. I still don’t quite understand the rules of offside, so maybe it’s just as well!
Feature Journalism
Also considered soft news, feature journalism focuses on human interest stories, with an emphasis on entertaining, educating, and engaging the audience. The topics are not always lighthearted however—some features shine a light on societal issues or expose suffering. Features are not time-sensitive, so they can be about any topic, an interesting individual, or a group of people. An evergreen story of course has staying power, being just as relevant and interesting a year or even 5 years in the future.
A feature goes into more depth than a news story, is longer in length, and adopts a different format and style of writing, with the focus on showing rather than telling a story. This gives the writer creative freedom and an opportunity to practice their narrative writing skills, employing storytelling techniques like the ample use of descriptions.
For example, if you’re conducting an in-person interview at someone’s home, you can describe the setting, maybe the art on the walls, or interesting décor. These colorful details draw in the reader, bring the story to life, and make the main “character” more three dimensional and relatable. As author and journalist Tom Wolfe once said, “The newspaper is, in fact, very bad for one’s prose style. That’s why I gravitated towards feature stories where you get a little more leeway in the writing style.”
Features appear in newspapers, magazines and online, and subjects can range from flea market pickers and television veterinarians to whiskey makers and clairvoyants (these are just some of the interesting individuals I’ve had the pleasure of interviewing for newspaper and magazine features).
Resources:
https://open.nytimes.com/how-we-redesigned-the-new-york-times-opinion-essay-ad5e0270f5bc
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/26/opinion/nyt-opinion-oped-redesign.html
Content Warning: the following articles contain harrowing images.
https://www.npr.org/2006/03/02/5241442/a-pulitzer-winning-photographers-suicide
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